In May 2018, the Productivity Commission released its draft report into the superannuation system. The report also made some interesting findings on self-managed super funds. In the 571-page draft report, Productivity Commission Draft Report on ‘Superannuation: Assessing Efficiency and Competitiveness (April 2018), ... Read more
Comparing super funds
Which superannuation fund is the most suitable for you? In this section, you can learn how to compare super funds in 8 steps, where to find the latest information on fund performance and investment options, and how to discover, and compare, other important features of super funds, such as cost-effective life insurance cover, reasonable super fund fees, and other member services.
If you have not chosen your super fund, then your employer’s super contributions have been paid into a MySuper account, selected by your employer or as stipulated in an industrial award or enterprise agreement. What then happens to your employer’s super contributions (Superannuation Guarantee) when you change jobs?
In this section, you can also discover whether you have the right to choose/change your super fund, and the steps you need to take to make that happen.
Click on the links below for more information on comparing super funds:
- Types of super funds
- MySuper and your super
- Comparing super funds in 8 steps
- Choosing a super fund (fund choice)
- How do I complete a Standard Choice Form?
- Investment performance
- Super fees and charges
- Insurance and super
- Considering an SMSF
Below are some of our key Comparing super funds articles:
Set out below are all SuperGuide articles referring to Comparing super funds.
Productivity Commission and super: 22 draft recommendations
In May 2018, the Productivity Commission released its draft report into the superannuation system, which also included its recommendations into alternative models for allocating default fund members to products. The PC produced 22 draft recommendations (set out below), and for each draft recommendation, we list ... Read more
Productivity Commission identifies 41 major issues with superannuation system
In May 2018, the Productivity Commission released its draft report into the superannuation system, which also included its recommendations into alternative models for allocating default fund members to super products. The PC released 41 draft findings (covering 11 main areas, which are set out below). The PC has ... Read more
Monthly Superannuation Returns Performance Reckoner (for 5 investment options)
You can find out the median monthly investment return of the 5 main investment options available in Australian super funds for at least the past 4 calendar years (from January 2014 through to the latest monthly results). You can also check out our SuperGuide article Investment performance: Latest monthly super returns ... Read more
Investment performance: Latest monthly super returns (to April 2018)
Note: For investment returns over 1 month, 3 months, 1 year, 3, 5, 7, 10 and 15 years to 31 April 2018 for 5 main investment options offered by super funds, see Table 1 later in the article. For month-by-month performance data, going back more than 4 years (52 months), for the 5 main investment options offered by super ... Read more
Super fees: Top 10 cheapest funds in Australia
Note: In this article you can find the cheapest super funds and the cheapest super pension funds. The fees listed relate to the balanced investment option of the particular public offer super fund. Balanced option is defined as having 60 to 76% of investments in growth assets, which means some super funds may describe ... Read more
KiwiSaver: Only 3 super funds accept super transfers from NZ to Australia
Nearly 5 years after the super rules changed, opening the door to super transfers between New Zealand and Australia, only 3 Australian super funds are accepting transfers FROM KiwiSaver accounts to Australian super accounts. Many more Aussie super funds however permit transfers of Australian superannuation savings TO ... Read more
Help! How can we find independent financial advice?
Q: My husband and I are looking for help with our retirement planning. We have accumulated a fair amount of super, and we are now looking for assistance on the investment portfolio. We have a share portfolio outside super and so we have some knowledge in the area but do not feel confident to make decisions about our ... Read more
Retirement planning: Six dangers when seeking financial advice
I have been writing about, or working in or on the sidelines of the financial services industry for 30 years now, and the regulator and the advising industry are still, in 2018, grappling with how Australians make investment decisions and the influential role that advisers and financial organisations hold in ... Read more
Cheap financial advice available from super funds
Superannuation funds have been providing cheap (and in some cases, free) personal financial advice to super fund members with the blessing of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), since 2009. In early July 2009, ASIC announced that it’s okay to provide personal financial advice over the phone, ... Read more
How to spot an independent financial adviser
Note: SuperGuide originally published this article about 7 years ago, but the topic remains highly relevant for readers today. We have updated the original article with information on the legal definition of ‘independence’ and the IFAAA’s version of independence. Every week I receive emails from readers searching ... Read more
Drafting your SMSF investment strategy: A Super Guide
Every super fund, including every self-managed super fund, is legally required to have an investment strategy. An investment strategy identifies financial goals (investment objectives) for the fund, and helps determine each fund member’s tolerance for risk and the investment time horizon for each member. Although ... Read more
